Mesh claims double
Auckland mom warns of surgical nightmare that destroyed her life. By Cate Broughton.
AN Auckland mother-of-two feels robbed of her health and happiness after a ‘‘simple’’ procedure to fix stress incontinence has left her with permanent pelvic and hip pain.
Alison Lee is one of a growing number of Kiwis who are suffering from severe complications associated with the use of surgical mesh to treat stress incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse and hernias. Latest ACC figures show the number of claims has doubled in the past three years.
‘‘I haven’t been able to work since. I have chronic pain and chronic fatigue. I’ve also got a hip injury and haven’t been able to walk properly since the surgery,’’ Lee said.
The mesh last month became the subject of an Australian senate inquiry.
Lee said immediately after the surgery to implant the mesh she felt terrible pain in her pelvic area which also radiated down her right leg and she could not empty her bladder properly.
A second surgery improved the bladder function but the pain continued and a year later she underwent another more invasive surgery to remove the mesh.
Only two thirds could be removed with the remainder fused to her pubic bone.
But now she has been told nothing more can be done for and her and her incontinence is worse than before she had the original surgery.
She wants to see the issue taken seriously and that victims are better supported.
The Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) turned down claims for Lee’s injurieswith spokeswoman Stephanie Melville saying payments for cover of an injury resulting from the first surgery were suspended when Lee’s consulting specialist advised it had been ‘‘resolved’’ after the second surgery.
Cover for urinary dysfunction, neuralgia, examination under anaesthesia and steroid injection, to treat hip pain, was declined because ‘‘they are non injury related conditions’’.
Lee’s husband Jeff Lee said the mesh surgery has destroyed their lives.
‘‘I can’t go out with my wife, she loves to dance, we can’t even dance, we can’t ride a bike together, we can’t go for a walk, we love to keep fit and active, we do family walks together – we can’t do that anymore.
We’re in the prime of our life and we’re just existing.’’
According to ACC figures, treatment injury claims have doubled in the past three years. Between January 2014 and March 2017 there were 301 claims decided upon. compared to 385 decided claims over an eight-year period from July 2005 to December 2013, an average of 46 per year.
ACC declined to release the number of mesh related claims that were under review but a spokeswoman said updated figures on all treatment injury claims would be released ‘‘shortly’’.